This Instant Pot Mediterranean Chicken Recipe is packed with flavor and is ready in less than 20 minutes with almost no work at all. It’s the easiest weeknight dinner that everyone will enjoy. All you need are a handful of ingredients and you’ll have dinner ready in no time.
f you love chicken thigh recipes you can also try this Baked Chicken Thighs, Air Fryer Chicken Thighs, Baked Caprese Chicken and this Chicken and Cauliflower Rice.
If you want a flavourful chicken dinner, then you need to make this Instant Pot chicken recipe. It’s made with simple everyday ingredients that you probably already have on hand. It is perfect for a busy weeknight meal and leftovers make for a great lunch the next day.
This recipe is so good that I believe you will make it many times. You will be impressed with how fast the chicken cooks and how moist it is. Also, the chicken thighs are so tender, juicy, and flavorful because it’s cooked in a sauce under pressure. It is so good!
I’ve mentioned before that my husband loves Mediterranean flavours so I make recipes using these flavours often. If you like this recipe, you’ll also love my Mediterranean Chicken Skillet Recipe, Easy Mediterranean Chopped Salad and Mediterranean Cauliflower Salad.
Ingredients
- Olive oil — you can also use Ghee in place of olive oil.
- Chicken thighs — I like using free-range organic chicken thighs. It’s easier to work with boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. You can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts.
- Onion — I use a white onion but you can use any onion such as red onion, yellow onion, or sweet onion. You can omit the onions if you are following the keto diet. Optional: If you love garlic, you can use some in this recipe or even garlic powder.
- Seasoning — I season this Instant Pot chicken recipe with smoked paprika, onion powder, chili pepper, ground coriander seed, dried parsley, dried oregano, salt, and pepper. You can also use Italian seasoning.
- Diced tomatoes — One of my pantry staples, canned diced tomatoes add a ton of flavour and creates a delicious sauce that the chicken is cooked in. Since you are already using diced tomatoes with the juice, you don’t need to use chicken broth.
- Black olives — The olives add a delicious salty flavour to the dish.
Instructions
Prepare the Chicken and Vegetables
- Set the pot to sauté mode and add the olive oil or ghee.
- Once cooked, add the chicken and sauté until they are browned. Set aside.
- Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes. Add all the spices, salt and pepper, and the diced tomatoes. Cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
Pressure Cook
- Add the chicken back to the Instant Pot and mix everything well until combined.
- Place the lid on the pot and make sure the pressure valve is in the sealing position. On the display panel, press the cancel/off button. Then select the MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK button and set it for 7 minutes.
- When time is up, naturally release for 5 minutes before switching the pressure valve to the venting position. Open the lid. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and add the black olives. Stir well.
- Serve hot over pasta, rice, roasted vegetables and/or mashed potato/cauliflower.
- Other ingredients you can add to the Instant Pot before pressure cooking are artichoke hearts (rinsed and drained) and sun-dried tomatoes. You can also top the cooked chicken with lemon juice and feta cheese.
- Searing the chicken before pressure cooking with help seal in the moisture. It also adds flavour.
- If there are brown bits on the bottom of your pressure cooker, you can deglaze it with a splash of water or broth. This not only adds a ton of flavour but helps prevent a burn message.
- Feel free to add fresh herbs if you have some on hand. 2 teaspoons of dried herbs roughly translates to 2 tablespoons of fresh herbs.
- Feel free to switch black olives for green olives if you prefer.
- You can serve this Instant Pot chicken thighs recipe with pasta or brown rice. You can also use this recipe to make chicken soups, chicken tacos and meal prep recipes.
When you natural pressure release the Instant Pot, you simply leave the pot alone and allow the pressure to decrease naturally on its own. Quick release is when you turn the sealing knob and let out the pressure immediately.
Yes, if you prefer to use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs, you are more than welcome to. Just make sure to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
Instant Pot Recipes To Try
Instant Pot Mediterranean Chicken Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ghee or olive oil
- 2 ib chicken thighs skinless and boneless
- 2 cups white onion chopped (Skip it if you're following keto diet)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon chili pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander seed
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 28 oz can diced/chopped tomato I like to use this one
- ½ cup black olives
Instructions
- Set Instant Pot to Sauté.
- Pour olive oil into bottom of pot and allow to heat.
- Add the chicken and sauté until they get brown, but they won’t be cooked through. Set aside.
- Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes. Add all the spices, salt and pepper and the diced tomatoes. Cook for more 2-3 minutes.
- Bring the chicken back to the Instant Pot and mix everything well until combine.
- Place the lid on the pot and make sure the pressure valve is in the sealing position. On the display panel, press the cancel/off button. Then select the MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK button and use the +/- buttons until the display says 7 minutes.
- When time is up, naturally release for 5 minutes before switching the pressure valve to the venting position. Open the lid. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and add the black olives. Stir well.
- Serve hot over pasta, rice, roasted vegetables and/or mashed potato/cauliflower.
Notes
- Deglaze the pot if there are browned bits at the bottom of the pot.
- You can swap 2 teaspoons of dried herbs for 2 tablespoons of fresh herbs.
- If you prefer green olives, you can use them in place of black olives.
- To store: Store leftover chicken in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
- To reheat: You can reheat the chicken in the microwave or stovetop.
- To freeze: Freeze everything in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months once it has cooled.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?
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Giiiiiirl! This chicken looks so flavorful and perfect! I have yet to buy an Instant Pot, but this recipe is definitely inspiring me to do so!
Friend, you should get one. This thing is amazing 😉
Hey!! Made this today and it turned out awesome…mine turned out more “brown” than red….but it was yum!!
Awesome, Huma! Happy to hear that 😉 Next time tag #primaverakitchen on Instagram so I can see, like and comment your photo 😉
Do you think this would work in a slow cooker, or would the spices/herbs need increased to stop from going bland? I’d never heard of an Instant Pot, and you can’t get them here in Holland, but I think Americans are way ahead of the game with appliances and food products, I’m envious!! ; – )
Hi, Karen. I think it will work in a slow cooker too. You should cook on low for about 4-5 hours. Thanks for your question 😉
Hi- I wante dto make this with 6 or 7 breasts, how would you tweak it?
No I think you would be ok with 6 or 7 breasts.
This recipe sounds great. But i noticed that there is no mention of if these are skinless or boneless thighs. Just wondering how they come out if they have the skin on them? Could you please clarify which kind you use? Thanks.
Thanks for your question. These are skinless and boneless. I will add this info on the recipe box. Thanks for pointing it out 😉
It was delicious but the bottom kept burning. I didn’t really end up using pressure to cook it since I kept getting the ‘burn’ error message right away.
However, I’m new to instant pots and it was just user error. I will definitely try the recipe again!
Hi, Mary. Sorry to heat that. I’ve made this recipe three times already and it always works well. If you try it again let me know if you still have the same problem. Thanks.
Muito boa essa receita
The recipe for 8 people states only 1 lb of chicken thighs. That seems very low, especially considering there is 28 oz of tomatoes. Can you please very the ingredient quantities for the default setting of 8 people?
It’s 8 to 10 chicken thighs. But you need to sauté first 4 to 6 pieces, set aside and sauté the rest. Then, you bring them all back to the instant pot and cook according to the instructions. Thanks.
hi! I’m planning on making this for my first instant pot recipe! I’ve been doing an awful lot of reading and researching LOL but not doing anything yet. I’m curious does this work as well with frozen chicken why should it be thawed so that it can sear up better? Thank you in advance
I would prefer to thawed so that you can sear it. It adds more flavour and the nice golgen-brown look 😉
My family loves this recipe. Is it possible to double the recipe? I’m hosting a family gathering and serving 10 people. I have the larger insta pot.
Great to heat that. I think it’s but I don’t know for sure since my IP is small.
hi there – when a you say chili pepper, do you mean chili powder or red chili flakes? thanks!
I mean chili powder.
Red chili flakes, “but chili powder” ? I’m confused.
I just corrected my comment. Thanks for pointing it out. I meant chili powder.
Very nice presentation, You’re a fantastic cook.
Thank you so much 😉
Can garlic or feta stuffed olives be used?
Yes they can!
Can I use crushed tomatoes
yes you can!
Sounds delicious, what cooking times would you use for bone-in thighs?
About 10 minutes!
I made this last night. I subbed half of the black olives for Kalamata olives so there would be a mix. Yum! We initially ate it over pasta, but with the leftovers, we had leftover sweet potatoes from your taco stuffed sweet potato recipe, so I put it over those….and OMGOODNESS yum! I think I will from now on make it to go over the sweet potato. Thank you so much for your delicious recipes. You are a staple in our house every single week!!!
You’re very welcome! So happy you liked this recipe.
Hello! Do I use high pressure for this? Sorry if I missed it.
High pressure. I just fixed it in the recipe card to avoid further confusion. Thanks for pointing it out. Thanks
This is a new go-to recipe! Fabulous & so easy! Hubby loved it too!
Right? So easy and it tastes so good!
Made this for supper tonight. My husband and I loved it.
Perfect. Happy to hear that 😉
Very good but took much, much longer than 20 mins total, more like an hour. Had to brown the chicken in two batches (we have a 9 qt instant pot), and then it took about 20 minutes to come up to pressure with all of the ingredients… and when the seal finally closed, the screen said “burn” 😫. Next time I’ll use the little rack to keep the chicken off the bottom which should help this last issue.